Darkness Within The Castle Walls
by Maggie Ann
Summary: Hermione Granger has been accepted to Hogwarts and befriends two boys her age,Harry & Ron. What the Three of them did not know was that Hogwarts was not what they had expected it to be. Blood, Experiments done on the children, No emotions. Dark fic, R&Hr.
1. Chapter 1

The Darkness Within the Castle Walls.

Disclaimer: I do not own the charaters in this story, none of them how sad.

I got the idea for this fic from TikkiTyler9 's Video "The Forrbiddin Light" .com/watch?v=ZWQdUc32WA0. She is amazing, and she is giving me permission to take her idea and put it in a story. So thank you TikkiTyler *bows*

There are some scary themes in this fic, dark Hogwarts and as mentioned before blood, tourture adn there is no emotion...well there might be some you just have to read to find out.

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It was a breezy stormy afternoon in July two months before Hermione Granger's eleventh birthday. Hermione Ganger ten and three quarters old her hair was a bushy brown rat's nest, her front teeth bucked out like a rabbits but she was smart, short and brown eyes, smartest in her school.

Her teachers praised her for her brains and her fellow students teased her for them, she had no friends she did not play with dolls like other girls her age she just came home form school everyday and finished her homework and than sat down by the fireplace in her favorite chair reading a book before bedtime.

She was not an ordinary girl by any means, she was intrigued by things she had not yet discovered, things that needed research to understand.

Her parents worried about her in the past three years but all of the doctors and specialist and councilors that they sought answers in all said the same thing she is a child trying to find out who she is and that it was perfectly normal for her to seem "off" were the doctor's words.

In truth not one of them knew what exactly what was wrong with little Hermione Granger, they did not know why when she would get angry things around her would explode, or when she cried it seemed that it would only rain on their home, or why when she would become extremely happy the light bulbs in the house grew brighter and the flowers would bloom even in the night when they were to be closed.

She had been doing this since she was born but her parents never really thought much of it, because it was never as noticeable till she became older. The Granger's had accepted and adapted to these behaviors as if they were normal, and they loved their daughter despite all the things that happen when she would have a sudden rush of emotion.

"Poppet, your birthday is soon is there anything in particular you would like or like to do?" Hermione's father Joseph Granger asked his daughter.

She was yet again sitting in her chair by the fireplace although there was no need of a fire this time of year but still she enjoyed the feeling of it against her skin the aroma rolling off the fire gave her a calming feeling and helped her focus on her book. She looked up from her book to look at her father and giggled

"Honestly father do you have to ask? A trip to the bookstore and a walk in the park just like always." Joseph's eyes sparkled at his daughter that was all she wanted every birthday and he giggled with her.

"Are you sure Hermione this is what we do every year. My dear girl you are coming into the big 1-1 there is nothing you would like to do? What about a trip to Paris or Egypt? What about going shopping for some clothes? Anything you want Hermione anything you want to do we will do." She pondered the thought of Paris and the temples of Egypt but she was content with her normal birthday celebration.

An armful of books and a walk in the park with her parents that was all she ever wanted for every birthday to come.

"No father thank you anyway. I just love my walks in the park with you and mum." She loved her mother and father more than her books or learning new things but she rarely had a chance to be with them, sure dentist does not seem like they would be gone to often but they were.

Her parents were held high in the density world and were constantly going out of country to teach and hold conferences so she was used to being almost eleven years old and being home alone for days at a time.

She had no living relatives to speak of and no friends to spend the night with so she stayed home almost always falling asleep in her chair reading her books while the embers on the fire died slowly.

Hermione went back to reading while her father went to the kitchen to prepare dinner for his family. An hour went by and Hermione's mother had come home from work carrying an armful of retired magazines from her office and they were sitting down around the table eating a notorious meal together talking about each others days when a knock on the door came.

Joseph looked at his watch puzzled who it could be at this hour. When he opened the door he looked into the eyes of an older man with a beard of white that went past his navel, half moon spectacles' sitting on the tip of his nose he was wearing some very old fashion clothes, a button up green velvet jacket with a pocket watch hanging from his breast pocket his pants matched the velvet green but what stood out most on this man was his blue eyes which when he smiled they only became brighter.

Just him being at the door he seemed to send a calm thro the Granger's home almost as if he put a spell on them to calm their nerves.

"Mr. Granger I presume. Very nice to meet you, always nice to put a face to the name you have been reading for ten and a half years and ah you must be the lovely Amelia and little Hermione." The old man had crossed the Grangers threshold and walked into the dinning room and shook the hands of the two ladies left at the table.

Joseph followed close behind with a confused look that matched the look that his wife had on her face but Hermione had curiosity in her eyes.

"Excuse me sir, but may I ask you your name and business with my family?" The older gentleman turned around and found the look that Mr. Granger wore and he gave a great chuckle.

"Yes I am sorry good man I have seemed to have forgotten my manners back home. Yes my name is Professor Dumbledore Headmaster of Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am here to inform your daughter that she has proudly been accepted into my school." Joseph looked more confused now, witchcraft? Wizardry? What is this? Someone at the office must be pulling a prank on him.

So Mr. Granger began to laugh loudly at this but the confusion was still etched onto his wife and daughter's face now a confused look had been put on the gentleman's face.

"So who sent you here sir? Was it Michael or Ray? They are the office clowns. This is a good one. I will have to figure out something to top them." He still laughed, so hard in fact there were tears coming from his eyes.

"I assure you sir this is no joke nor is it a prank. I am here to tell you that your daughter, Hermione Granger is a witch and a right good one is suspect with all the magic that has been pouring out of her for several years. The day she was born the nineteenth day in September of 1979 her name was put on my enrollment list. I assure you that she will shine bright in my school. Please sir sit down and we can speak of this further." Joseph Granger stopped laughing and did as the man asked and sat down never taking his eyes off of the man.

They talked about Hogwarts and the wizarding world, how Hermione was a muggleborn and when school began she would be boarding a train and be gone form there home till the Christmas holidays. They went over everything for several hours.

Hermione all the while wide eyed and excited to be able to explore a new world where she new nothing and could learn about everything new. Her parents were a little more apprehensive about all of this but they agreed to think about everything and the man said he would be back in one weeks time to discuss the matter once again.

One week later the man came back to the door at the same time and the Granger's invited him into their home to sit and discuss Hermione leaving them on September the first.

Hermione watched the adults discuss form the staircase watching and hoping with all her might that all of her begging and badgering and little hints took a toll on her parents and give her the permission to go to school somewhere new and exciting.

The man stood up form the couch about an hour after his arrival and looked up to the staircase looking at Hermione her parents signaled her to come down the stairs to join them in sending off the man. "Miss Granger I am looking forward to having you come to my school in the next few weeks, here is the list you will need. There is a map to Diagon Alley in there as well that is where you will need to buy all of your school things. Mr. and Mrs. Granger thank you for your time. Have a blessed day."

He turned and left the house once the door was closed Hermione squealed with excitement and hugged her parents the best she could before the light bulbs in the house exploded all over the house. Hermione blushed and gave a nervous chuckle.

"See I will go to this school and learn how to not do this."

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Three weeks passed and Hermione found herself in a bookstore in Diagon Alley getting her supplies and taking in all the unusual things that were before her eyes.

While she was going along the shelves reading every title she could she spotted a boy around her age not too much taller than herself with red hair and she looked over at him, she watched him intently.

He was looking for the books he needed for school too and so she thought she could help him find them since she had already found hers and was just looking for some books for some light reading.

"The Dark Forces : A Guide to Self-Protection is right here. And One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi is on the third shelf over there." She told the red haired boy. He looked at her and gave her a small smile.

"I'm Hermione Granger, and you are." She had been practicing, her parents wanted her to be able to make friends in her new school.

"Ron, Ron Weasley." All Hermione could think of to say after that was "Pleasure" her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

She had never really tried to speak to other children her age let alone a boy. She tried to think of something else to say but by the time she had turned around the boy had already ran off to find the other books he would be needing for the term.

Hermione returned home that afternoon with everything she had bought in Diagon Alley put it in her school trunk but left out her books. She had every intention to read every book on the list and a few of her other books that she had received from Flourish and Blott's before the start of term.

So she sat in her chair for the next week never putting down her precious books, sinking in every drop of information she could. She wanted to be fully prepared for whatever was to happen.

A week later Hermione and her parents set off for King's Cross looking for Platform 9 ¾, they passed through the barrier without a problem and once on the other side the sight of the great scarlet train sitting on the tracks made Hermione's breath stop in her throat.

It was so beautiful, something that looked as if it came out of one of her dreams. She loaded her luggage and came back to her parents to say her goodbye till the Christmas holidays.

Her mother's nose was pink and her eyes were a shade of red that would almost put the Hogwarts express to shame. Her tears were both happy and sad, just like any mother's would have been when she was sending her child to a unknown school for the next two and a half months. Her father was consoling her and rubbing the top of Hermione's hair,

"Hermione will be just fine dear. If she does not like it she can always come home and go to another school." Hermione let her tears fall as her mother gave her a long loving embrace, her father gave her the biggest bear hug he could muster than sent her off onto the train to get a good seat before all the other children got onto the train.

Hermione boarded the train looking for an empty compartment close to the drivers cabin. The closer she came to the drivers cabin the less the compartments were filled. She wondered the hall for several minutes before she finally decided that one compartment with two boys in it, one she recognized, that was the compartment that she wanted to sit in.

She opened the door and asked the boys if it was ok for her to sit with them. She came in there were two seats and both boys were sitting on one so she took the other seat, she had a great view of what was coming.

The other boy sitting with the red haired boy was named Harry Potter, he had unruly black hair and glasses that were broke in two but put back together with some tape. Hermione eager to show off her skills she repaired his glasses for him that was the ice breaker that they needed.

For the rest of the train ride Hermione, Harry and Ron would sit together and talk and laugh and wonder. Ron had been raised in a wizarding family but Hermione and Harry both were raised in a muggle home. In Hermione's mind she had made friends, wouldn't her parents be so proud.

The sun set and the children clamored to put their school robes on before they arrived at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Once the train came to a halt Hermione's heart began to pound into her ribs, her mind began to whirl hoping she did not make a fool of herself.

Harry, Ron and Hermione stepped off the train to hear a man with a loud low voice screaming for the first years to follow him. They joined a rather large crowd of first years as they boarded a small boat that could hold five children at a time at the most. She was in total awe, the boats moved by them selves no drivers no paddles. But when she saw the castle her heart gave a flutter and her stomach gave a lurch. Her never were beginning to kick in.

They walked a flight of stairs to meet an older woman with she did not look happy or kind. They followed her into a room and they talked about putting a hat on their head and being sorted into a house that would be like our home while they were here. From there the first years followed her into a large hall, which Hermione knew to be the Great Hall.

She had picked up a very interesting book called "Hogwarts: A History". The first years all lined up in front of the hall waiting to put the hat on their head. Hermione was excited and nervous. The first boy went up to the stool sat on it and the hat screamed Ravenclaw.

What she thought was weird was that there was not one clap in the whole hall, there was not one sound. She looked around at the teachers and students not one had a smile on their face, except for the first years that stood at the bottom of the stairs of the teachers table and the boy that was just sorted.

Slowly all of the first years were sorted and seated at their appointed houses, Harry, Ron and Hermione all were sorted into Gryffindor a house of noble and brave witches and wizards.

The man that came to Hermione's house stood at the head of the table and put the candles out that were standing on the podium. "Let your feast begin." Hermione stared at him, the sparkle in his eye and his bright smile were gone there was no laud chatter or laughter like lunch time was in her muggel school.

Hermione's stomach gave her a weird upset feeling, almost as if she were in a bad place and needed to get herself out of it but Hermione chalked it up to being nervous and scared about failing in her classes.

In an instant plates of food appeared before Hermione, there was chicken but there was barley any meat on the bone, there was salad but it was almost completely rotten and there was vegetables but those looked almost rotten as well Hermione thought maybe that this was what they ate in the wizarding world and did not want to look as if she was a stuck up prude she filled her plate with the meager and rotting food and ate without one sneer at it.

After a half an hour Professor Dumbledore stood back at his dark podium and swept the food off the tables with a wave of his hand. He did not wear a kind smile, he did not laugh or give off any sign he was happy just like the old woman she saw earlier.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, I am headmaster Dumbledore for those of you who do not know me. Before I let you go to your houses and find your dorms I am to remind you that any student that is found wondering the corridors at night will be severing detention with Mr. Filch. Also there is no magic to be used in the corridors between classes unless instructed by a teacher. There is rule manual in your rooms that must be signed by you and handed in at the end of the week, you will hand them into your head of house at that time. Now it is time for bed. Sleep well, may you have the best of nightmares and let the bed bugs bite." With that Professor Dumbledore left his podium and everyone stood form their seats getting in lines to head out of the Great Hall.

No words were spoken by any student or teacher on their journey to their houses.

Hermione's stomach was still giving her the weird feeling but she was ignoring it while she walked the castle she stared at the walls the pictures here seemed to be moving into other frames. Gryffindor tower was a climb that was for sure but Hermione enjoyed it.

Once she got there the head boy Percy, who by chance was Ron's older brother, showed them to their dorms.

The girls separated into their dorms finding their bed, once inside Percy locked their door behind them.

The girls found their bed and trunks finding their bed clothes they talked some but they all were so tired form the long train ride all they had real time for was pleasantries. A girl with blonde hair somewhat like Hermione's name was Lavender Brown, and Parvarti Patil she was a beautiful girl long black hair and tanned skin. It seemed if Lavender and Parvarti were quickly becoming best friends.

As soon as Hermione's head hit her pillow she was asleep. And just like Dumbledore had said she had one of the most imaginative nightmares she had ever had in her short life.

Hermione was in her bed and a man with a patch over his eye came into her room and pointed his wand at her with a red spark coming form its tip Hermione suddenly felt the most intense, horrific pain she had ever felt she saw him point his wand at her roommate Parvarti and heard her scream the most terrible scream, as Hermione listened she could hear all sorts of screams through out here house, she could hear screams coming form the boys dormitories and the other girls dormitories.

The man pointed his wand at Hermione again and she screamed the pain was too much she passed out listening to the screams of her fellow students.

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I know that this is spaking questions in your mind but you will just have to wait a few more days to find out what all is going on. Sorry :)

Please keep the reviews up!!

Love Always

Maggie


	2. The First Day Of First Year

The Darkness Within the Castle Walls

Chapter 2

When Hermione woke up the next morning her body was sore. Every muscle was contracted into knots and her bones ached. The nightmare she had was still fresh on her mind; she could not shake it. Every time she thought more on it the more her body ached.

She opened her eyes and looked around. Lavender was out of bed. "She must be in the shower," Hermione thought. Parvati was still asleep. Every now and then Hermione could hear her whimper and groan when she would toss and turn in a restless sleep.

Hermione looked around the room inspecting it, looking for something although she did not know what. She looked at the walls. The pictures that were there the night before were missing and the curtains around the four-poster, including her bed sheets, had turned from maroon in color to black. Hermione thought this strange and her stomach gave a twist, almost making her sick, yet she ignored it once again thinking it might be that she was just hungry. That was when she saw it, the rule manual.

She picked it up and opened it to the title page. It read:

"The rules and regulations for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry"

Hermione flipped the page once and read: "Rule number one: you will not use magic outside school until you have reached the age of seventeen." _Ok_, Hermione thought. That's easy enough to remember. As she read further down her stomach twisted and turned and gave her many jolts telling her that this was not right. She should not be here. She had to leave Hogwarts and go back home.

"Rule number forty five: You will not write your parents, your head of house will do that for you. Your name will be signed at the end of the letter." This brought tears to Hermione's eyes.

"Rule number fifty: you will learn to use the _CruciatusCurse. _You will perform this on other students with full co-operation." Hermione had read about the _Cruciatus_ Curse and she knew that it was a form of torture; she knew this was bad.

"Rule number sixty two: you will drink the potions that are being created." The more she read the more she wanted to run, the more she wanted to leave the school. What kind of place was this?

"Rule number sixty six: each holiday and end of term before returning home you will have your memory modified."

One of the last few rules taunted her. "Rule one hundred and two: you will be stripped of emotions, leaving none left. You will not show happiness, you will not cry, you will not love, you will not be passionate, you will not laugh or care for others, the only feelings/emotions you will be allowed to demonstrate are pain, anger, fear and hatred."

But the last rule made Hermione break into tears. "Rule one hundred and five: if you try to runaway, defy the staff, or break a rule you will be taken into the forbidden forest and be used for the other students to learn the killing curse."

Hermione finished reading the rules and wiped her eyes, there was one page left, where she would have to put her signature.

"After reading this, all of the rules will be put into effect. You will obey the rules. Your need to escape will be broken." Something in her brain clicked and she wiped her face, confused. Hermione looked around her room and went to the desk across from her bed. With the rulebook in her hand, she picked up a quill, dipped it in some ink, and signed her name at the bottom of the page.

She gave a deep sigh and felt slight anger course through her veins. Hermione moved almost robotically, she went to her trunk and got out the clothes she was to wear for classes.

A small movement was made in the bed next to her own. Parvarti Patil was beginning to wake up from her nightmarish night. Parvarti sat up and groaned, looking for some sign that what happened in her dreams did not happen in reality, but when she looked to Hermione for some type of answer, some reassurance, all she got was a cold glare. Parvarti had silent tears rolling down her cheeks as she wrapped her aching arms around herself, wishing her twin sister, Padma Patil, were sitting here with her instead of in Ravenclaw tower.

A cold chill ran threw Hermione when she saw the girl so scared and sad, a tinge of sympathy came over her, but it left as quickly as it came. Hermione picked her clothes off of her bed and went to the ladies shower, stopping to look out the window at the rain falling softly outside.

When Hermione came back out of the shower she looked at the two girls huddled on Parvati's bed crying together. Anger warmed Hermione's body as she looked on the two.

"You two need to get up, read your manuals and get ready for class- it starts in an hour."

Lavender only cried harder at Hermione's sudden coldness. They huddled closer, more for feeling safer rather than comfort. Hermione turned away from them. Her stomach gave a jolt and a twist, a familiar feeling to Hermione but she just could not put her finger on it.

Harry and Ron were in the common room waiting at the bottom of the stairs, both dressed and ready to go, smiles plastered on their faces and a sparkle in their eyes. At the sight of Hermione, Ron's eyes lit up more, if that was at all possible.

"Hermione, your ready for breakfast?" Harry asked impatiently, his smile bright and full of sickening happiness.

Hermione still wore no expression on her face but her heart beat a bit faster when she looked into Ron's eyes, at the sparkle that shined so bright.

"I guess Harry. Did you two read your manuals? I have and it is signed and ready to be handed in. You two better hurry with that, you should never put it off till the last minute."

Hermione walked passed the boys into the common room. Seamus, a boy in Ron and Harry's dormitory, sat in an armchair, just as happy as Harry and Ron. As soon as he noticed the three of them heading for the portrait hole he jumped up and followed them quickly, not wanting to be late for breakfast. Seamus talked with Ron and Harry but Hermione stayed at a fast pace ahead of them, not looking around as she did yesterday, not wanting to hear their happy conversation, Hermione's stomach gave another uneasy deep jolt, making it harder to ignore this time.

A teacher, the one from her nightmare, was standing in front of the group of first years. Hermione remembered him but felt nothing for him, but Ron and Harry the looks on their faces, scared and confused.

The man had a weird eye; Hermione had thought there was a patch was on it before. It was a deep ocean blue and it spun around in its holder. It gave Hermione the feeling he could see right into her soul, into her mind and read her thoughts. She had caught both of his eyes now, but once she noticed that he was looking at her she felt chills run through her body. She quickly put her head down and began to walk a little faster down the staircase towards the Great Hall, with Harry and Ron shortly after her.

Hermione was not afraid, but she was angry and when she looked at that man the pain she had last night in her dreams came back; her bones felt like jelly and her stomach gave another jolt which made Hermione think that maybe, just maybe, she would throw up right there and then.

Ron and Harry quickly found an empty seat at the Gryffindor table and sat down to eat their rotten eggs and drink their spoiled milk. Hermione tried to eat- she really did- but her stomach just would not let her. Harry and Ron both grimaced at their food but ate all the same.

Ron looked around the table. There were some first years with looks on their faces just like Hermione's, and his older brothers Percy, Fred and George made Ron homesick for some reason.

Seamus Finnegan saw that Ron was looking down at the table at his brothers with a saddened look so he looked down the table as well but he could not understand the look on Ron's face. As Seamus kept looking at the people at his table he noticed something strange about the girl he had shared a compartment with on the train.

Lavender Brown last night on the train was giggly and happy. Today she was stone faced and looked angry, the same face most of the people in the room wore.

"Right so our first class is Potions and it starts in 15 minutes so hurry up and finish eating. We will not be late on our first day Ron." Hermione broke Seamus and Ron's thoughts.

Ron looked at Hermione, who wore an unreadable face. It made the tears in Ron's eyes grow more, but he quickly blinked them away.

"Ok, I'm ready. Let's go."

Harry, Ron and Hermione got up from the table, grabbed their bags, and set off looking for the Potions room.

They went down two staircases leading to the dungeons; the farther they went down the darker and the colder it got. The Potions classroom was a dark room with a small window to the far right; a green light was coming through the window. _We must be underground with the green light coming from the Lake_, Harry thought.

Ron took his seat next to Hermione with Harry on her other side. All around the ceiling was a rail, full of bottles of potions. Most bottles or jars had some sort of body part being preserved. Some you could tell were animal parts, like hooves and tails, but there were some that were hard to distinguish between human and animal, tongues, eyes, hearts, brains, and livers.

The more Ron looked the more uncomfortable he became, seeing jars with fingers and toes, ears and noses unlike he had seen in his mother's cupboards for potion making. He had never seen anything like this; in her cupboards were beetle eyes, plants, caterpillars, all sorts of bugs, that sort of thing, but not stuff like this.

Before Ron had more time to think on it, a man in a black billowy robe came rushing in. His black hair hung in his eyes, a frown was on his lips, and his eyes were as black as his robes.

"My name is Professor Snape and I am your Potions master. In this class you will learn the art that is potion making."

Snape turned to the chalkboard behind him and began to write the ingredients and instructions for the "Draught of Living Death." When Professor Snape finished he called to the class to begin making the potion. Hermione immediately began working on the potion as did Harry and Ron, but Dean Thomas, another boy from Harry and Ron's Dorm, looked confused still.

"Is there a problem Mr. Thomas?" Snape asked coldly.

"N-n-no, Professor." Dean stammered.

"Good, now get to work."

Snape stared at Dean, intimidating him. Dean was getting more and more nervous by the second. He stumbled over to the store cupboards and took out a jar of wormwood.

On his way back with the small jar, he fell over someone's bag, dropping the jar. It shattered on the floor.

Most of the students laughed or gasped but there were still a few that were completely emotionless, Hermione being one of them. Hermione looked up long enough to look at the mess on the floor and look at Dean but than without any concern for him she went back to cutting up the valerian roots to the exact specifics on the board.

Dean Thomas closed his eyes and got up onto his knees, picking up the glass and the spilt contents of the jar. Professor Snape walked slowly up to where Dean Thomas sat.

"You incompetent little fool. Ten points from Gryffindor and Mr. Thomas, you will test each of these potions next class. Is that understood?"

Dean looked up at Professor Snape, fear making him shake and mute. As Professor Snape passed Dean, he kicked him in the side, making him fall over and spill all the wormwood again.

The rest of class went without any problems. At the end, the class cleaned up their tables, poured a portion of the Draught into a vile, labeled it with their names, and put it on Professor Snape's desk.

The Students all piled out of the class and into the corridors, going their separate ways to their next classes.

Hermione looked at her schedule. "Dark Arts" was next. Her stomach gave a strong jolt. It was painful, and Hermione dropped her books and grabbed her stomach. Her face contorted into a look of immense pain. She lost her footing and dropped to her knees.

Ron quickly grabbed Hermione, holding her steady on her feet while Harry was asking her what was wrong. She could not form words; her mind went ridged with visions of her dream, the man with the one eye pointing his wand at her and making her whole body riddle with pain; she could hear herself screaming along with all the other students in her house.

Hermione opened her eyes with Ron and Harry at her side. Both were scared and concerned but Hermione's brain asked, "Why aren't they affected if the same thing happened to them? What if it really was a dream?"

"Hermione? Are you ok?" Harry asked again.

It took Hermione a few seconds to register everything. The pain in her stomach was slowly subsiding, her bones still aching but slowly starting to relax.

"Yea, Harry, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" She said coldly.

Ron let her go and looked over at Harry. They did not know Hermione very well but they knew something was not right. They watched Hermione walk into the class, Ron's heart beating fast, his breath coming in short, deep gasps.

Ron was scared and he did not know why, he felt his stomach heave as if telling him this was a bad idea and not to go in. This only made Ron more scared. Harry patted Ron's shoulder and they walked in.

The room was full of glass. It was dark in here as well. There were pictures of people getting tortured and families running from their burning homes. Harry and Ron found their places next to Hermione and took out their books, parchment, and quills. Most of the children chattered amongst themselves but a few others, including Hermione.

Ron thought maybe she took school very seriously and when they went back to the common room tonight after all their classes she would lighten up and be more talkative like she was yesterday.

The man from Hermione's dreams came in the door. His leg was made of metal; when he walked it made a terribly loud _thunk_ against the ground; his magical blue eye spun in its socket, watching everything around him; a chunk of his nose was missing and his hair was a dirty blond, shaggy to his shoulders, looking as if he never combed it.

"I am Professor Moody and I will be your Dark Arts teacher. In this class you will learn all you need to know about curses, hexes, jinxes and defense."

Moody went to the board and wrote down the three Unforgivable Curses on it. Ron recognized them but was always told that if you used them then you would be cursed for life and be chucked for death in Azkaban Prison. Hermione looked like a stone stature and Harry was visibly shaking, he seemed to be getting the same bad feeling as Ron. Ron watched the man write and take out his wand; a flash of pain went through his bones remembering a nightmare he had last night.

Before Professor Moody had time to finish all the writing on the board, Terry Boot, a Ravenclaw first year, stood up to throw away his gum, and when he came back to his chair, he hit Michael Corner in the back of the head by accident, but Michael Corner took it personally. Michael stood up and pushed Terry just a little, but it was still noticed by Professor Moody, the man who could see everything. Moody turned around while everyone's attention was still focused on Terry and Michael.

"_Crucio!" _Moody boomed and Michael screamed and writhed in pain on the floor.

Moody lifted the curse as most of the class stood in protest, including Ron, screaming at Moody or trying to help Michael up off the floor.

"Now children, this is one of the Unforgivable Curses you will learn about this term. You will learn to perform this curse and many other enjoyable curses. When your parents came to this school, they did not teach these sorts of curses, but now the curriculum has changed with the headmaster. So even those of you that have been raised here in the wizarding world will be learning something new. For those of you that do not know what curse I have just performed, that is the _Cruciatus Curse. I_t tortures the person, gets them to talk. I performed it on Mr. Corner over there simply because he annoyed me with his childish ways," Moody said as he turned back to the board he was writing on.

"But he is simply that, sir! A child!" Harry screamed at the man's back.

Harry did not know what hit him. A jet of red shot out of Professor Moody's wand and Harry fell backwards screaming and writhing just as much as Michael did, but this time he did not put his wand down as fast as he did with Michael. Harry screamed, and Ron tried to help to move him out of the way, only causing Ron to scream in pain as the curse hit him in the back. Ron screamed only for a minute as Hermione sat in her chair watching the scene, not moving in concern for Harry or Ron. But her stomach gave another painful jolt and her mind went back to normal for just a blink of an eye. She thought of Ron; tears came to her eyes as she heard him scream but once she blinked, her mind went right again, no emotion, no concern, nothing. And the tears went with the blink.

The curse on Harry was lifted, but not soon enough; he had passed out. There was blood coming from his mouth and a few drips from his head.

"Let that be a lesson to you! There will be no defiance or anyone speaking out of turn in this classroom! Is that clear?"

The majority of the class nodded their heads in their answer. "Good! Miss Granger, please take those three to the Hospital Wing to Madam Pomfrey."

Hermione stood up, patting Ron on the shoulder. He stood and took Harry by the arm, trying to hoist him up. Hermione took his other arm, with the both of them carrying him and Michael following close by. Ron and Michael were limping making it more difficult for Hermione to take Harry to the Hospital Wing very fast, still trying to figure out where it was in the first place.

The four of them went up and down staircases, around corners, through corridors, searching for the Hospital Wing before they finally found it on the third floor, only two floors up from the Dark Arts room. A woman who looked utterly upset came out of her chambers fussing about it not even lunch and students were already here.

Michael and Madam Pomfrey grabbed Harry and took him to a bed. Afterwards, Michael climbed into one for himself. Hermione put an arm around Ron and guided him to a bed close by. Once she laid him down, she looked to Madam Pomfrey for permission to leave. When she started to leave, Ron grabbed her arm.

"Hermione, stop!" Ron grabbed her with so much force she almost lost her balance and fell; she turned on the spot looking at Ron.

"Hermione, what's wrong with you? You are not like this." Ron kept his hold on her while Hermione's expression did not change in the slightest.

"Nothing is wrong with me, Ronald. What would make you think something was wrong with me?"

Ron stared at her with such disbelief that Hermione the girl he met in Flourish and Blott's could be this cold.

"Hermione, you are not the same girl I met a few weeks ago, you were so eager to help me with my books now you just sit there while people are being tortured and you had this sparkle in your eye- Hermione, where did that go? And your smile, it was always on your face?"

Hermione looked at Ron, her stomach giving her another weird feeling, and for a few seconds she felt herself tear up, but she shook her head as the words from rule one hundred and two flashed through her mind. _You will be stripped of emotion. You will not show happiness, you will not cry, you will not love, you will not be passionate, you will not laugh or care for others, the only feeling/emotion you will be allowed to demonstrate are pain, anger, fear and hatred. _

"Ronald…that girl is gone."

She sounded almost defeated, taking her arm away from Ron and beginning to walk away.

"Miss? Yes, you bring their homework, will you? The whole lot of them will be here overnight in observation."

Hermione nodded her head and went back to the Dark Arts class. Once on the staircase leading back to the first floor, Hermione saw more of the rules running in her mind, among them flashes of her mother and father and a flash of a row of books and a red haired boy looking lost among them, a kind smile and a flash of blue eyes her way. A tear fell from Hermione's eyes before her mind and her heart shut off again.


End file.
